The hatred towards the replacement refs was a classic example of the public buying into media generated hype 101. From the preseason on, the media set the stage for that W-T-F moment. The stuttering on the announcement of a penalty and the inevitable bad call in the course of a game was going to be foreshadowing for their inevitable failure.

The public drank up every ounce of the hater-ade.

FoxSports analyst and former NFL VP of Officiating Mike Pereira wrote a very critical article after week 2 about the replacements yet was only able to cite relatively trivial issues.

The blown non-interception that upset more than a few cheese heads in Wisconsin was what everyone was waiting for. People said it was a disgrace to the game but it is exactly what everyone wanted, especially the media. They pounded on it like a hungry Lion waiting in the tall grass only to have a wounded gazelle stumble on by. The replacement refs were the wounded gazelle.

They never stood a chance.

The media used the replacement refs as if they were a placebo drug. The media scientists told us precisely what they were going to do to us and people put the blinders on and looked only for evidence that would fulfill that prophecy. The public’s mind became set on the replacement refs being terrible and nothing was going to get in the way of that.

This past week should have shown us all that the replacement refs were not all that bad.

For the first 3 weeks, legions of fans echoed a similar sentiment of ‘you don’t know what you got ‘til it’s gone.’ However, week 4 was more like getting back together with that ex-girlfriend you wanted to get back with so badly but after getting her back you wondered why you ever missed her so much in the first place.

I can bet that if we didn’t know that the referees were replacements through the first weeks, the difference fans were truly aware of would have been minimal.

The lack of excessive pushing and shoving kerfuffle’s was no doubt noticeable in week 4 but, again, this was really more of a minor issue than anything. The biggest problem critics of the replacement refs had with regards to this was that it slowed down the game. Okay then, the average time of games through the first three weeks was 3 hours and 14 minutes. The average time of games for week 4 was 3 hours and 8 minutes.

In case you weren’t able to do the math, that’s a 6 minute difference.

An absolute farce?

The replacement refs were subject to this double standard that they were ruining the integrity of the game or as some fans liked to say, “our game.” Each blown call was met with criticism of ridiculous proportions. Luckily for the refs this past week, they were subject to a reprieve on most anything because, for some reason, there was this unreasonable standard placed on the replacement refs that crucial mistakes would not be tolerated.

But were the refs ruining the integrity of the game this past week when Darren Sproles was ruled down by contact even though he clearly fumbled? When the Eagles were flagged for consecutive non-existent pass interference calls late in the game? When the Cleveland Browns received an illegitimate shot at a final second miracle against the Ravens?

Didn’t think so.

The replacement officials seemed so bad simply because everyone was so caught up in condemning and scrutinizing their every move. It isn’t that the replacement referees were just as good as the real referees, it’s that they weren’t nearly as bad as they were portrayed to be.

I guess people just forgot that the real referees make gigantic game-altering mistakes as well.

In the moment though, it is so easy to forget what happened in the past. I mean, people already seem to have forgotten Lebron James embarrassed the city of Cleveland on national television to create his super team.

Thing is, the replacement refs were never tarnishing ‘America’s game.’

You just wanted to think they were.

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7 Responses to Noticeable Difference?

This is an admirable attempt, but I’m afraid it misses the mark. While it’s true that the national media (in particular, ESPN) has the ability to sensationalize stories, that doesn’t mean they ALWAYS do it. Relying on that narrative can get you into trouble, and it did.

No two ways around it – the replacement referees were atrocious. While the regular refs are also human, and gave everyone a painful reminder of that reality during their first Sunday back on the job, the gaffes were nowhere near the level of the scabs. A Sports Illustrated article last week showed the replacement officials were calling a high level of pass interference and illegal contact penalties, usually in favor of the home team, while illegal shifts and illegal formation penalties hadn’t been called at all.

Coaches and players knew the rules better than the guys in the black-and-white shirts, resulting in an immediate rise in effective intimidation. There might have been missed calls yesterday, but the real guys have control of the field of play, and they know the rule book. There were no 27 yard personal foul penalties, no “Fail Mary” situations, no extra timeouts or challenges awarded to teams, etc.

If you weren’t such a good writer, I’d accuse you of being a contrarian to generate hits, but I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt on this one. The honeymoon with the real referees didn’t last long, but 99% of football fans would agree it’s better that they’re back. Your argument that the difference is negligible just doesn’t hold water.

The pace of the game is quicker, that much I have noticed. That being said, Ron Winter (who officiated the Giants Eagles game) and Jeff Triplette (who officiated the Saints Packers tilt) and their crews are the worst officials in the NFL. They are as bad as the replacement refs. Good post even though I don’t quite agree with your assessment.

The game was already tarnished before this farce ! What should the fans have expected when you have officials from the D3 and D4 College Football as well as high school football officiating NFL games ? You seem to have overlooked that in your summation . Wayne Elliott , the lead official in the Packers’ vs Seahawks’ debacle , his last game before that riotous farce, was a high school game in Plano , Texas .

I got so tired of hearing about it. ESPN made it much more of a story than it should have ever been. I saw many bad calls this weekend in the GIANTS game alone. There will always be mistakes from officiating, anyone who thinks there isn’t is a fool. Wasn’t it the last 2 straight seasons everyone was crucifying Ed Hocules for bad calls, then he is all of a sudden the poster child when they come back?